


We were never here

by firefanglefeathers



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: F/F, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:21:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 713
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27922960
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firefanglefeathers/pseuds/firefanglefeathers
Summary: Set after Vanessa sends the ring back to Charity. Lots of angst ensues. Not a happy tale. Told mostly from Charity's point of view. Trigger warnings of rape, trafficking, drug and alcohol abuse.
Relationships: Charity Dingle/Vanessa Woodfield
Kudos: 6





	We were never here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charity makes contact with a ghost from her past.

A month had passed since Vanessa had sent back the ring. In that time Charity had flailed so much that she had almost lost her kids. She really didn’t want to be sober but knew that to keep her kids she would need to be, at least as long as it would take to get them back. Her kids helped her. They kept her tethered to this world. Without them, she really didn’t think she would have the strength to stay.

Now Noah, Sarah and Moses were home. She wasn’t the best mom or granny. In fact, she was probably one of the worst, but she did try. Noah and Sarah ended up doing most of the leg work. They got Moses up for daycare, got him dressed, and breakfast in him before they left. Charity rolled out of bed and drove Moses to the daycare and then came back home to take up her seat on the couch with bottle and glass in hand. She knew this couldn’t continue indefinitely. Eventually she’d need to sober up and take responsibility. It was the fear of the pain that kept her from stopping. 

She tried to tell herself that it was just the end of a love affair. It had happened to her so many times before and she’d survived. I mean, it’s just an end to a relationship. It’s not a death sentence. She could continue. She could move on. But she really couldn’t. She felt like her happiness had slipped through her fingers. The pain was too much. She needed to dull it and the alcohol wasn’t working the way it used to. She needed something else, something stronger. That’s when she decided to do something so reckless, so crazy that even she was terrified. The next day she would tell Chas that she was taking a leave of absence from the pub and would prevail upon Cain and his new loved-up situation to take care of the kids for a week whilst she got herself together. What nobody knew was that she had no intention of getting better or sober. In fact, quite the opposite. 

“Tom, hi it’s Charity.” 

Tom was a bit confused. The only Charity he knew was a bony teenager who had the life beaten out of her over and over again. But that was so long ago. Almost 30 years. He remembered the young blond girl with fondness. Back then she’d been beaten to an inch of her life when he came across her for the first time in an alley behind a popular kebab shop. At the time he was a bit out of it, having recently snorted three lines of of cocaine before venturing outside. He was meant to meet a customer who had wanted to buy an 8 ball from him. It was when he’d gotten to the pre-planned destination that he’d spotted her; hair matted, clothes dirty and torn, and a crazed look in her eyes that said ‘please end this’. That look was heartbreaking. He knew that look. He’d seen it himself many times when he looked in the mirror. He decided to take pity on this abused creature and take her home. The drug deal forgotten. 

“Charity? It’s been … a while.” 

Charity knows that her friend is struggling at the other end. Really she had no idea how he might be dealing with things; whether he’d be on the straight and narrow or had fallen back on his old unhealthy ways of dealing with life’s upsets. She’d hoped for the latter.

“I know and I’m sorry. Look, I’m in a bit of a bind and need some help. Could I come see you?”

Tom thought about this. He knew Charity must be in a bad place to reach out to him, but his curiosity got the better of him. “Yes”, he said. “When should I expect you?”

“Tomorrow,” she announced confidently. Then realized that she actually didn’t know where he was living these days. “But I’d need to know your address.”  
Tom laughed, knowing what Charity was really asking. “Black Manor. 12 pm sharp. Do not under any circumstances bring a companion with you.”  
“I wouldn’t even think of doing such a thing.” “Good,” said Tom. “That will help a lot.”


End file.
